Both former head coaches of the Houston Dynamo are natives of Scotland, and were born in July about a year apart. But little else about the careers and lives of Dominic Kinnear and Owen Coyle bore much resemblance, and Coyle's departure from the post this week is a stark reminder of just how different and difficult coaching in MLS can be.

Sebastian Giovinco isn't going to the Euros. Italy's loss is MLS's gain. More particularly, Toronto FC gets to turn loose Seba on MLS defenses all of June and early July when he'd otherwise have been tied up with Azzurri duties somewhere in France.

The Philadelphia Union, the Eastern Conference leader, plays in Orlando Wednesday, flies halfway across the country to play the league's top team, Colorado, on Saturday, then comes home to host Columbus. Three games in eight days, starting off with Florida heat and then playing the league's top team at altitude.

Perry Kitchen left MLS after five seasons though the destination turned out to be somewhat of a surprise. Denmark, Germany, and Belgium had been mentioned as possible destinations, instead he wound up in Scotland with Heart of Midlothian and did well enough to earn a spot on the 23-man U.S. roster for the Copa America Centenario.

Is the time right for Brad Guzan to take over as the U.S. No. 1? Both he and Tim Howard lost their starting spots in the Premier League and Howard has returned to MLS and will play for Colorado, which leads the Western Conference.

Nobody can match the production of Kei Kamara since he joined Columbus prior to the 2015 season: he scored 22 regular-season goals and four more in the playoffs as it reached the MLS Cup final, and he's among the leaders this season with five goals in nine games. But he's been traded to New England -- his sixth MLS team -- and the Kei Watch starts Saturday against Chicago.

No MLS head coach or executive has ever praised the league's schedule-makers. Conflicts with other competitions and staggering travel distances make each season a test of fortitude and organization as much as talent. This week is one example.

At first blush, there is nothing startling about the 40-player list from which Jurgen Klinsmann will pick 23 players to take to the Copa Centenario in June. They're the same old suspects, you might say.